On Wings of White
by V. Shalyr
Summary: "Since when did I become your own personal taxi service?" KaiShin


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed.

**Summary:** "Since when did I become your personal taxi service?"

**Pairing:** Kaito x Shinichi

**Status:** Complete

**On Wings of White**

**By V. Shalyr**

Normal nine-year-olds didn't wander around streets at night alone or sneak through security to get to the roofs of multi-floor department stores. But then Edogawa Conan did a lot of things that normal nine-year-olds didn't do. And that was because Edogawa Conan was really Kudou Shinichi, and Kudou Shinichi wasn't nine years old. No, he was nineteen—or at least, he was supposed to be.

Three years, he mused, glancing at his reflection in a store window as he passed. It had been three years since he'd been drugged and accidentally turned into the child he now appeared to be, and one year since the criminal organization responsible had been brought down.

Strange.

It felt like much longer.

The rooftop was cold and windy when he made his way across it and he pulled his jacket closer about him instinctively. It wouldn't do to catch cold. He wouldn't be able to do this anymore if he got sick—not that it would matter anymore in a few days, but he was trying not to think about that. Funny, he was so intent on getting back to his old life before, but now that Haibara had finally developed a cure, he felt almost reluctant to take it. It wasn't that he didn't want to go back to being a teenage detective. He would welcome being able to live in his own house again, set his own schedules, stop lying to his friends, get out of his dreadfully boring elementary school classes and go back to working cases properly without having to hide and borrow other people's voices. But this… This he wasn't sure he'd be able to hold on to and the thought made his insides twist in a way that had him feeling mildly ill.

"My, my, Tantei-kun, again tonight? Careful or I'm going to start believing that you enjoy my company."

Shoving the depressing thoughts to the back of his mind, Shinichi turned to face the figure clad all in white that had dropped down onto the rooftop railing. "Maybe I do. Who can say? Stranger things have happened."

KID chuckled, a sound that always seemed slightly evil when coupled with his manic grin and shadowed features. "Too true. You're lucky I could make it today. You chose a rather inopportune time to call. A certain nosy detective has been making himself a real nuisance. So where to?"

"Well," Shinichi started, reaching up to adjust his glasses so he didn't have to look the thief in the eyes, "I was kind of wondering if you could take me home."

"Not the Mouris'?"

Shinichi shook his head. "My home—on Beika Street."

"Home today, grocery shopping yesterday and a party you didn't even actually want to go to before that," KID mused aloud, holding out one white-gloved hand. "Since when did I become your personal nighttime taxi service?"

He sounded more amused than irritated and Shinichi hid a grin, letting himself be pulled up into the other's arms. "You didn't have to come."

"No, I didn't," the thief said thoughtfully. And Shinichi had to wonder not for the first time what he was thinking, his reasons—whether he felt the same about these little outings of theirs.

Then KID had stepped off the railing and they were falling for an instant before his glider engaged and they soared sharply up into the dark, night sky. Shinichi closed his eyes, loving the feel of the wind rushing past them and the spike of adrenaline as the ground fell away beneath their feet. But mostly, he loved the feel of the warm body pressed against his back and the arm wrapped securely around him as they glided high above a sea of glittering city lights and yet still so far away from the glitter of the stars.

It had started when Shinichi met Snake for the first time.

The KID heist was almost over and he'd been on the roof waiting for the thief to make his final appearance—only to discover that he wasn't alone. And the other man on the roof waiting with him had had a gun. Shinichi had immediately hidden himself to watch the man, trying to find an opening for his tranquilizer dart only to have a white-gloved hand clamp over his mouth as KID pulled him further back into the shadows.

"_You should get out of here, Tantei-kun. It doesn't look like today is going to be a good day for our games." _

"_That man—" _

"_Is not your concern. Listen to me, Tantei-kun. You might look like a child, but believe me when I say that he won't hesitate to shoot you if you get in his way." _

"_You know him?" _

_A smile that seemed far too cold on the thief's usually mischievous face, "Now's not the time, Tantei-kun." _

"_I know you're there, KID!" the sniper's icy snarl interrupted them as though right on cue. "You can't hide from me." _

_The sound of a bullet ricocheting off the concrete near their heads made the thief curse. His indigo gaze half obscured behind his trademark monocle flickered towards the sniper then down to the mini detective and Shinichi could see his thoughts racing. Taking a deep breath, KID cupped his hands around his mouth and called out in a voice that echoed across the empty rooftop, "Why, hello, Snake. Long time no see. I rather thought you were the one hiding from me." _

"_I'll kill you!" _

"_Been there, done that. Didn't work so well last time, did it?" _

While he spoke, KID had crept around the edges of the roof, keeping out of sight and dragging Shinichi with him. It hadn't hit the sniper that the magician thief intended to run until it was too late, and then they had been flying away from the museum amidst a storm of curses and near-silent gunshots. Of course, after that, Shinichi had been completely unwilling to let the thief get away without a proper explanation. Sure, KID irritated a lot of people with his antics and perhaps alienated others with his disturbing popularity. But kill him? What had the thief gotten himself into?

That night, they had shared perhaps their first completely honest conversation and it had lasted almost until dawn. Shinichi found out about a side of KID he hadn't known before and a story surprisingly dark for the seemingly playful and lighthearted Moonlight Magician, an almost impossible story about a magical gem called Pandora with the power to grant immortality. But myth or not, the bloodshed had been and still was very real. And Shinichi had told KID about the real reason he was stuck attending grade school for the second time.

Shinichi had been more than a bit upset to discover that KID had been taunting the Organization and trying to deal with them alone. But on the flip side, they now knew that they had a common enemy. They began to see one another with a great deal more regularity—to discuss plans and follow up on leads. Not surprisingly, KID proved unmatched in his ability to collect information, and Shinichi worked on putting the pieces of the puzzle together. And working together…well, the Black Organization hadn't stood a chance.

That had been more than a year ago.

Now, Snake and all the other major players in the Organization were securely behind bars and KID was free to continue his search for Pandora at his own pace. As for Shinichi, still trapped as a child, he had continued to live with the Mouris, helping out the older detective when necessary and keeping an eye on the people around him. Haibara still hadn't found a cure at that point, but it hadn't mattered as much as it had when he first became Conan. Despite himself, he'd grown to like being a part of the Shounen Tantei. His parents had always known his secret and didn't treat him any differently than they used to. He'd grown used to helping other detectives and solving cases from the sidelines. And Ran…both he and Ran had changed, moved on—grown up. She'd started dating Eisuke and Shinichi had begun to find excuses whenever he could to call KID.

Because somewhere along the way, he'd noticed a strange feeling whenever the thief took him flying. He hadn't known what to make of it at first—and face it, a couple thousand feet up in the air wasn't usually the best place to think about anything other than the ground below—but then perhaps that was just the thing. When they were up in the air caught between earth and heaven and despite the precariousness of that position, he _could_ think about other things. Because for those few moments, someone else was looking out for him, someone who was meticulously calculating about everything, someone from whom he had no secrets and who he trusted never to let him go.

It was strange, he supposed, for a detective to feel _safe_ in the arms of a thief. But then he'd never been an ordinary detective and KID had never been an ordinary thief.

For his part, the thief didn't seem to mind. When Shinichi had tentatively decided to call him for the first time after their work against the Organization had come to an end, he'd answered with his usual cheer and readily agreed to pick him up from the banquet he'd been stuck at with Mouri Kogoro. Twenty minutes later, KID had waltzed into the banquet in disguise to spirit him away, but instead of going to scout a criminal hideout or interrogate a possible informant, they'd ended up at a dessert shop across town before the thief delivered him back to the Mouri Detective Agency. After that… Well, finding excuses to see him had been disturbingly easy.

"You know, Tantei-kun," KID's half teasing, half serious voice pulled him from his recollections of the past and Shinichi turned his head so he could catch a glimpse of his face. "You've been out after dark rather a lot lately."

He paused and Shinichi waited. It was comments like these that made him almost sure KID knew.

"From that particular shopping district to Beika Street," the thief mused presently, angling the glider to catch an updraft and take them higher. "Almost all the way across the city… Are you expecting something to happen soon?"

"…You could say that."

"Hmm, you're not going to go disappearing on me or anything, are you?" _Because I'm not going to be very happy about it if I find out that that's what you're not telling me. _

"Not exactly." _But things are going to change. _

"Not into straight answers today, I see."

"Now you know how it feels to deal with _you_ all the time."

"Touché."

"…No, I'm not going to disappear. Disappearing is really more your thing."

"True, but I always come back."

"Do you?"

"Pandora is still waiting for me."

"What about after that?"

"Are you worried, Tantei-kun?"

_Yes_, Shinichi thought, but aloud he couldn't bring himself to say anything. He was being a coward and he knew it, but relationships had never been his strong suit and KID wasn't exactly an easy person to read. He didn't even know what his real name was. Perhaps that was a sign in itself that he should just give up.

He wondered idly what the thief would say if he knew what was on his mind. Maybe tease him, maybe laugh, maybe nothing…

All too soon, they landed on the rooftop of the Kudou manor. But instead of leaving, KID lingered, a trace of concern showing through his usually unreadable mask as he regarded the detective beside him. "Are you sure you're all right? You seem rather out of it today."

"I'm okay. I just need a bit more sleep."

"Well…if you're sure. Goodnight then, Tantei-kun."

"Goodnight. And, um, thanks."

A familiar grin beneath the glint of a monocle in moonlight, "You're welcome."

Shinichi waited until the white spec had disappeared into the darkness before pulling out his cell phone and keying in the long familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Haibara."

"You're late."

"I know. Sorry."

"Are you ready?"

"…Yeah."

The sudden reappearance of renowned teenage detective Kudou Shinichi stirred up quite a commotion especially among the law enforcement and criminal populations, but Shinichi himself hardly noticed. He had so much work to catch up on and exams to take if he wanted to go to university on time, and then of course there was going back to work as a detective. It would have been a lot easier if he hadn't been so preoccupied.

"Shinichi!"

The detective jumped as a hand was slammed down on his desk and looked up into Ran's scowling face. "Huh?"

All around them, students had paused in their chatter and packing to stare at them. Ignoring all of this, Ran grabbed his wrist and began to drag him towards the door. "Com on, you're going to eat lunch with me."

That said, she proceeded to march him out of the school and into a café across the street. Pushing him down into a chair, she ordered two cups of coffee for them and dropped down across from him.

"Shinichi," she began sternly in a voice he recognized as her big-sister voice from when he was Conan, "I know something's been bothering you and I want you to tell me what it is. Don't think I haven't noticed you spacing out in class."

"It's nothing really—"

He broke off when she glared at him. Neither of them spoke while the waitress set their drinks down upon the table. Though the moment she'd hurried away, Ran said more quietly, "I'm worried about you. You've been so quiet since you got back."

Shinichi looked down into the steaming cup, feeling a bit guilty. "I'm sorry. It's just that a lot's happened."

"I know." Her expression softened for a moment then sharpened again into a frown. "But it's not just that. You've been so distracted. Even Takagi-keiji brought it up. I can't help you if you don't tell me anything. I thought we've had this conversation already."

Shinichi sighed. She sounded so concerned, and really, if he couldn't talk to her about this, who could he talk to?

"Well…" He trailed off, trying to figure out how best to phrase things, "There's this person that I ended up working with on that big case and we sort of got to be friends…"

"That's good. You need more of those."

Shinichi scowled at her and sank lower in his chair, mumbling, "That's not the point."

Ran frowned, tapping her chin thoughtfully while she scrutinized his expression. The longer she stared, the redder her childhood friend became, and something suddenly clicked in her head. "You like this person."

It wasn't a question and Shinichi looked away, wishing the ground would just open up and swallow him whole. The world never had been very obliging when it came to his wishes. "Kind of."

A smile broke across Ran's face. She _had_ been a bit worried about him when they'd officially agreed that they were no longer interested in one another that way. Shinichi had always been a bit awkward when it came to relationships, not to mention _dense_, and she'd sort of figured that if he ever went on a date, she'd have to set it up for him. "That's great. So who is she?"

"…He."

"Oh." Ran blinked then hid her grin behind her coffee cup. She couldn't help it, he looked so embarrassed. "So have you told him?"

Shinichi mumbled something and she cocked her head, cupping one hand to her ear. "What?"

Still blushing, the detective sank even lower in his chair as though trying to hide behind his mug. "I think he already knows and he might feel the same, but I can't be sure. And it would never work."

Now Ran was definitely curious. "Why not?"

"Because I'm a detective."

Ran pondered this for a moment, the wheels of her mind turning and putting the pieces together to come to the obvious conclusion. "Is he some kind of criminal or something?"

"You could say that." Shinichi continued hastily at the somewhat incredulous expression on her face, "But he'd never hurt anyone, and really, he's done a lot more good than harm. He just…has to do things a little differently for certain reasons."

Ran's eyes narrowed as she thought back over the last couple weeks since Shinichi had gotten back from that case he still refused to tell her about. He'd always had a habit of reading the newspapers, but she'd noticed him lingering on certain articles longer than others and it got her thinking. And impossible though it seemed at first, it would make sense. "Are we talking about KID?"

Shinichi jerked his head up off the table and that was all the answer she needed. She wanted to laugh at the irony of it, but restrained herself at his obvious distress. "I still don't see what the problem is. I mean, you just told me you've been working together. And if you guys could be friends, why not more?"

"It's just…I don't know. It's just so hard to tell what he's thinking. And I guess... I guess I'm not sure if he really even trusts me," he confessed. "I've known him for almost two years but I still don't know who he really is, his name, what he does when he's not being KID."

"Have you ever thought about just asking?"

Ran rolled her eyes when her friend stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "Seriously, Shinichi, you can be such an idiot. Have you ever thought that maybe he's just as unsure about you as you are about him? And technically, he's got a lot more to lose if things didn't turn out to be the way he thought they were. As you said yourself, you _are_ a detective, and that's always made up such a big part of who you are. For all you know, he's just been waiting for you to say something. Have you even talked to him lately?"

"No."

"There you go. There's a KID heist in a few days, isn't there? Go talk to him. It's even at the local museum. Maybe that's his way of giving you a chance."

"But—"

"No buts. I'm tired of watching you mope around." Getting to her feet, Ran's waved a finger in front of his nose. "Go talk to him, or I'll tell Sonoko that you know KID and never told her. And you _know_ how obsessed she is about him."

And so a few nights later found Shinichi waiting on the rooftop of the Beika Museum, shivering slightly from the chilly night air. Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long. KID arrived as silently as the phantom he called himself and stood by the railing, holding his night's target up to examine it in the moonlight.

"It's not it," Shinichi observed quietly, stepping away from the wall where he'd been leaning.

"No, it's not." Sighing, the thief turned and tossed the diamond pendant towards him, which Shinichi caught out of reflex. "It's been a while since our last meeting, Tantei-kun. I see you're back to your old self."

"Yeah. It's been busy."

"I imagine so. I've missed you at my heists. It's good to have you back."

He grinned and Shinichi thought he sounded almost relieved. Had he been worried that Shinichi wouldn't want to see him anymore now that he had his old life back? Maybe Ran had been right after all. Whatever the reason, Shinichi found just a bit of the anxiety knotting his stomach slip away.

He moved up to stand beside the thief at the railing, glancing out at the shining cityscape with a slightly wistful look clouding his eyes. "I guess you can't take me flying anymore."

"I could, but it wouldn't be very comfortable. You could always learn to fly a glider yourself."

"It wouldn't be the same though, would it?"

For a long moment, KID didn't say anything, and Shinichi had to wonder at the cryptic nature of their conversation whenever it strayed into matters that concerned them more personally. Perhaps if they had been more straightforward from the beginning, he wouldn't have to wonder so often what the other was thinking or worry so much about whether he understood. Then, "We could do something else."

The detective relaxed completely and turned to offer him a hopeful smile. He hadn't realized just how tense he'd been until the tension had gone. "I'd like that."

The young man standing on Shinichi's doorstep looked—well, remarkably like Shinichi, perhaps a year older with messier hair and a roguish air of restless energy that never surrounded the detective.

"Hey," his visitor greeted him with a brilliant smile that left Shinichi slightly dazzled. "My name's Kuroba Kaito and it's a pleasure to meet you."

Shinichi blinked at the hand he held out then reached out to shake it. "The pleasure's mine. Ah, would you like to come in?"

When the door closed behind them, Shinichi shot him a rather bemused look. "Kaito, huh?"

"Yup, Tou-san had that kind of sense of humor."

"So he was the original Kaitou KID."

"Yeah, he was." Kaito's smile faded for a moment then returned in full force as he took a step closer to the detective. "I wasn't sure what we'd both actually like to do so I thought we could head downtown, grab a bite to eat, wander about a bit and see where things go from there."

"Sounds good to me."

Kaito snapped his fingers and offered him a single red rose, his expression abruptly quite serious. "Are you sure? I don't plan on ever letting you go. I _am_ a thief. I don't like to share. And what I find truly precious, I never give back."

Shinichi accepted the rose and smiled. "I figured as much."

"Good." Kaito grinned and leaned forward to kiss him full on the mouth before grabbing his hand and heading right back out the door. "Let's go!"

**Author's Notes:** Eh, I thought it was going to be a funny story when I started it, but I guess it decided it wanted to be dark and serious instead. In any case, thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. ^_^


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